Tuesday, December 20, 2011

This holiday season, we hope you will give the gift that warms the heart, stirs the creative spirit, and brings our community together.

You may have enjoyed one of the over 70 diverse arts and cultural events the Silver Spring Town Center, Inc. presented this past year, including the Silver Spring Blues Festival, Plaza Performances and the "Tribute To America's Veterans" Concert. We were pleased to showcase many community groups like the Greater U Street Jazz Collective, Strings4Joy, Contradiction Dance, and the Titanes Salseros, the champion salsa dance ensemble from Albert Einstein High School. It is our goal in 2012 to continue engaging members of our community in making the Civic Building and Veterans Plaza our "community living room" and community performance space. While we have presented hundreds of visual and performing artists from our community and beyond, we aim to do even more as we continue to grow.

Your tax-deductible contribution today directly helps to support our mission to provide a vibrant, inclusive and engaging community gathering place that enriches the lives of residents throughout the Greater Silver Spring area. In fact, 100% of your donation goes directly towards showcasing local and international talent from a variety of creative disciplines, while at the same time building community and celebrating our diversity in the heart of Downtown Silver Spring!

Please help us reach our $10,000 goal by the end of the year so that we may continue to provide a vibrant, inclusive and engaging community gathering place-a "community living room"-- that enriches the lives of residents throughout the Greater Silver Spring area. Click here to donate online

Thursday, December 15, 2011

Dimensionz of Bluz has been playing together for a year and live up to their name. Each of the members brings his own style of blues to synthesize a unique sound. Mike Baytop has a long history in the Washington area as a Piedmont or country blues musician. Tim Nolte comes from the Midwest and brings a Chicago / rock style of blues. Willie Leebel has long been a student of the delta style of blues. And Marcus Childs-Moore has a strong background in jazz providing an additional element to the group. Plan to hear some blues standards performed in an inimitable way. Here, Tim Nolte plays "Here Comes The Sun."

What to bring: Ideas, questions, stories, business cards for networking, and a brown bag lunch and/or drink, if desired.

Where to show up: Silver Spring Civic Center Building; One Veterans Plaza, Silver Spring, MD 20910 (We’ll meet in the Colesville Room, 2nd floor. The Civic Building is the new building across from the Majestic Movie Theater, near Ellsworth and Fenton.)

Guest Artist: Laura Shovan is editor of the art and literary journal Little Patuxent Review. Her chapbook, Mountain, Log, Salt and Stone, won the inaugural Harriss Poetry Prize in 2010. She is the editor of Life in Me Like Grass on Fire: Love Poems (MWA Books), featuring 50 Maryland poets. Laura is currently co-editing Voices Fly: An Anthology of Exercises and Poems from the MSAC Artist-in-Residence Program for the Maryland State Arts Council, to be published in 2012.

Monday, December 12, 2011

On Monday, December 5, Ghandi Brigade presented the new documentary film "The Rights of Butterflies" which tells the story of an undocumented college student named Katya in Montgomery County and her struggle to fund and continue her college education due to her legal status.

In the documentary, we learn about Katya’s personal sacrifices in coming to the United States, her transition into the Silver Spring Area, where she constructs a sense of home, and her perseverance to achieve her goals and dreams for a better life. The title of the film ponders a world where people could have the same rights as butterflies moving freely across borders with no need for legal status or documentation of any kind.

Over 200 attendees gathered in the Great Hall of the Civic Building for a public screening and post-film discussion. The subject of the film Katya was present along with filmmaker Laura Goya, who is a student of Montgomery College,

This event was co-sponsored by the Gilchrist Center and the Silver Spring Regional Center.

To learn more about the film and event, please call Gandhi Brigade at 301.588.1399 or visit their website at www.gandhibrigade.org/content/rights-butterflies

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Congratulations to the After School Dance Fund, Inc. and supporters of the 12 Annual MCPS Latin Dance Competition that was held Monday, November 28, 2011 at Stathmore Hall. Hundreds of MCPS students, teachers, parents, friends and fans gathered to see talented dancers from many of Montgomery County's public high schools. Participating schools included Blake HS, Clarksburg HS, Einstein HS, Gaithersburg HS, Rocville HS, Seneca Valley HS, Walter Johnson HS and Watkins Mill HS. Teams competed in eight divisions: Salsa, Cha-Cha, Bachata, Merengue, Parent/Student, Alumni, Jack-n-Jill, and Best-in-Show.The After School Dance Fund (ASDF) is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization created in 2010 in order to offer a meaningful afterschool experience to all Montgomery County Public Schools’ Latin dance club participants. These programs promote cross cultural awareness; bridging the gap between communities, strengthening family values and empower students of all backgrounds, to share their heritage and culture which allows them to communicate better in school and at home, and continue their personal and educational growth in order to become healthy and positive members of our global society. For information about the After School Dance Fund, visit their website at http://afterschooldancefund.org/

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

The Silver Spring Town Center, Inc. Board of Directors is pleased to announce the appointment of Lisa Martin as Executive Director of Silver Spring Town Center, Inc.

“We are thrilled that Lisa Martin will be joining SSTCi as our Executive Director,” said Alan Bowser, President of the Silver Spring Town Center, Inc. Board of Directors. “Lisa Martin shares our vision of celebrating diversity and creating community, and has the professional experience to creatively advance our agenda to promote cultural understanding through community arts & entertainment programming.”

Ms. Martin has over 10 years of experience working with arts and cultural events primarily in the Nation’s Capital, including the Smithsonian Folklife Festival as well as a wide variety of embassy events. Having worked on numerous arts festivals and other large community-based events, both domestically and abroad, she is skilled in all areas of program development, marketing and promotion, membership development, as well as event management. She also has a strong background in volunteer management having recruited, trained and managed hundreds of volunteers for city-wide events, including the 2004 International VSA Arts Festival, a four-day multi-arts event which brought together over 1000 visual and performing artists with a wide array of mental and physical disabilities from all corners of the globe.

For the last several years, she has managed the DC-Brasilia Partners of the Americas’ Lecture Series at George Washington University, which presents artists, scholars and other experts on Brazilian arts and culture. Previously, she managed the National Peace Corps Association’s Embassies Program, which featured an array of speakers and performing artists representing a variety of cultures and disciplines. In addition to this experience, she has an extensive background doing qualitative research and evaluation for museums, science centers, art galleries, historical sites and other places of learning.

"I am very excited to be working with the Silver Spring Town Center, Inc. and helping to create a vibrant and welcoming place where the arts and culture can shine, said Martin." "I look forward to collaborating with local visual and performing artists, area businesses, other non-profits, and members of our community to ensure that the Civic Building and Veterans Plaza serve as a real 'community living room' where everyone is always welcome."

Ms. Martin served as a US Peace Corps Volunteer in Estonia. She holds a Masters Degree in Performing Arts Management, a B.S. in Cultural Anthropology and a B.A. in Journalism.

The Silver Spring Town Center, Inc. has been very active in promoting the arts and humanities in Silver Spring and in greater Montgomery County. It has organized the very successful Silver Spring Blues Festivals at Downtown Silver Spring which have entertained thousands of neighbors and visitors, the annual benefit concerts in support of Montgomery County’s veterans, community dance classes, and its popular Plaza Performances on Veterans Plaza. This year, alone, SSTCi’s Plaza Performances have brought more than 50 free musical acts to the public, featuring jazz, blues, folk, classical, and rock music.

Friday, November 18, 2011

The featured speaker at the Silver Spring Town Center, Inc.'s October Arts Salon was artist Rosana Azar, who discussed "color." For more information about Rosana, check out her website at http://www.rosanaazar.com/rosanas_studio.html

Saturday, November 12, 2011

The 4th Annual Tribute to America's Veterans Concert held in the Great Hall of the Silver Spring Civic Building was a tremendous success! Over 200 people enjoyed wonderful performances by Piedmont Blues artist, Warner Williams, and the Greater U Street Jazz Collective.

Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett, Maryland State Senator Jamie Raskin and Montgomery County Councilmember March Elrich were among the many distinguished guests during the evening program.

Friday, November 11, 2011

Please join your neighbors at this year’s “Tribute to America’s Veterans” Concert in the Great Hall of the Silver Spring Civic Building.

The Concert featuring Warner Williams—this year’s National Endowment for the Arts Heritage Fellow—and the Greater U Street Jazz Collective—will be held on Friday, November 11, 2011 at 7 pm in the Great Hall of the Silver Spring Civic Building. There will be a reception with light refreshments from 6 to 7 pm in the Civic Building Atrium.

Tickets are only $20 and the proceeds will benefit two great Montgomery County veterans-serving organizations: Hero Dogs, Inc. and Vietnam Veterans of America, Chapter 641.

For more information and to purchase tickets online, visit http://www.silverspringtowncenter.com/veterans-concert-2011/ Tickets can also be purchased at the door.

Warner Williams is one of America’s greatest acoustic blues singer/songwriters, recently acknowledged by the National Endowment of the Arts as a national treasure in traditional American music.

The Greater U Street Jazz Collective is a Washington DC based jazz collective that is inspired by the great jazz tradition of the historic Greater U Street section of the city. In the days during segregation, jazz music from the likes of Duke Ellington, Jelly Roll Morton, Miles Davis, Charlie Parker and John Coltrane was played in the jazz clubs that lined the streets of U Street.

The Tribute to America’s Veterans Concert is a production of the Silver Spring Town Center, Inc. Visit our blog at www.silverspringtowncenter.blogspot.com, follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/sstowncenter or on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/groups/8305814081/

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Thanks to everyone who contributed to Silver Spring Town Center during the first annual "Give to the Max" Day in metro Washington.

The Silver Spring Town Center was proud to participate in this very successful event.

Thanks to Razoo, 17,839 people gave "to the Max" on November 9th! Their incredible generosity helped raise $1,886,584 and strengthen the nonprofits who make our community a great place to live and work.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

On Wednesday, November 9, from 12:01am - 11:59am, residents of Maryland, DC and Virginia will join together online to donate and raise millions of dollars for local nonprofits, as part of the 1st annual Give to the Max Day.

Dear Friend of the Silver Spring Town Center,

Silver Spring Town Center, Inc. has joined up with the "Give to the Max" campaign. The goal is to get thousands of local residents to support their favorite regional charity, raising millions of dollars in donations and grants in just 24 hours.

As part of Give to the Max Day, nonprofits can earn a share of $125,000 in cash awards. There are awards for organizations that earn the most donations, as well as awards for organizations receiving the most individual donations within each hour from 2 PM to midnight. There are even awards for 12th and 44th places!

You can check out our page and what your donations could go towards by visiting http://www.razoo.com/story/silverspring. Of course, any donation you make will be appreciated and will help fund a variety of performance and education goals.

Make sure to become a fan on our "Give to the Max" page, and to post our "Give to the Max" link (http://give2max.razoo.com/story/silverspring) on your FaceBook and Twitter pages - and talk it up among your friends and colleagues ... and don't forget to donate!

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Please join your neighbors at this year’s “Tribute to America’s Veterans” Concert in the Great Hall of the Silver Spring Civic Building.

The Concert featuring Warner Williams—this year’s National Endowment for the Arts Heritage Fellow—and the Greater U Street Jazz Collective—will be held on Friday, November 11, 2011 at 7 pm in the Great Hall of the Silver Spring Civic Building. There will be a reception with light refreshments from 6 to 7 pm in the Civic Building Atrium.

Tickets are only $20 and the proceeds will benefit two great Montgomery County veterans-serving organizations: Hero Dogs, Inc. and Vietnam Veterans of America, Chapter 641.

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

The Silver Spring Town Center, Inc. is pleased to announce the 2011 Host Committee for the Fourth Annual "A Tribute to America’s Veterans" Concert.

The Concert featuring Warner Williams, NEA National Heritage Fellow, and the Greater U Street Jazz Collective will be held on Friday, November 11, 2011 at 7 pm in the Great Hall of the Silver Spring Civic Building.

Thursday, October 13, 2011

During the 2011 season, the Silver Spring Town Center, Inc. was pleased to bring exciting community-based arts & entertainment programming to Veterans Plaza. We hosted over 50 performances, with more than 200 performers for thousands of Silver Spring residents & visitors. We brought jazz, blues, rock, folk, country & western, rhythm & blues, reggae, hip-hop and classical music, along with modern dance, to our "community living room."

Friday, October 7, 2011

Please join us for another exciting Plaza Performance as we welcome the Felix Contreras Latin Jazz Trio to Silver Spring's Veterans Plaza. The performance, Sunday, October 9, 2011 at 3 pm is free!

Felix Contreras (drums/percussion) has shared the stage with many of the top names in Latin jazz, particularly during his days in California. More recently, he's recorded with Poncho Sanchez and Dave Samuels (Caribbean Jazz Project).

Eddie Eatmon (bass) has toured with the Clovers, and performed jazz around the Washington DC area for many years. A student of the late Keter Betts, he performs most weekends at 701 on Pennsylvania Avenue.

David Schulman (violin/percussion) began performing professionally as a teenager, and has performed solo and as a member of jazz, tango, klezmer, cowpunk, classical, Western Swing, charanga and Cuban son groups, and is a former board member of \the Latin American Folk Institute.

About Us

The Silver Spring Town Center Inc. is a not-for-profit organization that has been established to provide community-based programming for the new Silver Spring Civic Building and Veterans Plaza located at the corner of Ellsworth Drive and Fenton Street in downtown Silver Spring.
The SSTCI is the result of a long process of community involvement and engagement to support the development of downtown Silver Spring. It was created to infuse community spirit and involvement in the new Silver Spring Civic Building and Veterans Plaza.
Our website is www.silverspringtowncenter.com